Production Information

Type

Technical Information

Action

Caliber

Magazine capacity

Range

Usage

Year introduced

Used by

The Nebelwerfer 42 (30 cm), also simply known as the 30 cm NbW 42, was a rocket artillery launcher that was used by Germany during World War II.

Description

The NbW 42 was part of the German Nebelwerfer series of rocket launchers that were developed throughout the war. The Nebelwerfer 42 fired 30 cm rockets at a distance of over 4,400 meters.[1]

The launcher itself consisted of six launch racks arranged in a three-over-three style, and was mounted on a two-wheeled trailer carriage. The NbW 42 was created by converting an existing Nebelwerfer 41 (28 cm) rocket launcher from launch tubes to launch racks. The NbW 42 fired the 30 cm Wurfkörper 42 Spreng spin-stabilized missile through an electronic firing system, in a timed ripple fashion, but could not fire rockets in singles. The back blast of the rockets kicked up much debris, which forced the crew to take cover before firing. This left the weapon exposed to counter-battery fire, for which reasons the crew had to displace the launcher hastily after firing.[2]

The rocket ammunition used by the NbW 42 was the same as that by the later Raketenwerfer 56.

History

The NbW 42 was used by the German Nebeltruppen in batteries of six launchers, with three batteries in a single battalion. These units mainly formed art of the Werfer-Regiments and Werfer-Brigades, but some NbW 42s were also used by other Army and Waffen-SS units.[3] The NbW 42 was in service from 1943 to 1945, and was used in most theaters of the war except Norway and North Africa.[4]